A MUSEUM dedicated to the 300-year history of the Green Howards has been awarded almost £1m from the Heritage Lottery Fund to pay for a major redevelopment.  

The Green Howards Museum in Richmond, North Yorkshire, will have improvements made to its facilities and displays in a bid to keep the history of the battalion alive.

The Green Howards, now known as The 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment, was axed by the Government last year during military budget cuts amid much anger across its traditional recruiting ground of Teesside and North Yorkshire.

Staff at the museum now believe it is more important than ever to represent the history of the battalion, which dates back to the 17th century.

The museum received an initial sum of £51,900 from Heritage Lottery Fund last year to develop its plans, and now it has secured a further £974,600 from the fund so the makeover can take place.

The work will include new toilets, a lift providing disabled access, and interactive displays with lift-flaps and pull-out draws to make the museum more appealing to children.

The museum will also employ a new education officer – a role that will be shared with the Georgian Theatre Royal and the Station in Richmond – and a community officer to encourage more people to visit.

The redevelopment will cost a total of £1.7m, with additional funding coming from fundraising. The museum still has £150,000 to raise.

The museum, in the Grade I listed Trinity Church in Richmond, tells the story of the Green Howards from its beginnings to the present day, and its collection spans three centuries of history in times of peace and conflict.

It houses artefacts, photographs and a display of more than 3,750 medals and awards including Victoria Crosses and George Crosses.

Major General Andrew Farquhar, chairman of the Green Howards Museum Trust, said: “Everyone involved with the Green Howards Museum is absolutely delighted at the news that we have received this element of the funding required to enable our redevelopment plans can go ahead.

“Our distinguished regimental history goes back more than 300 years and it is important for society today to keep those memories alive.

“We have a fantastic array of objects which visitors have been enjoying for many years, but once the refurbishment is complete, it will boast even more eye-catching displays and bring our story up to date with displays about the Army of today.”

The museum will close in the autumn with refurbishments starting immediately, and will reopen in summer to autumn 2014.